1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a foot pedal that can be used to manually actuate a surgical instrument that is inserted into an eye.
2. Background Information
There have been developed various surgical procedures for correcting eye defects. Ophthalmic procedures are typically performed with a surgical instrument that is inserted through an incision in the eye. By way of example, there have been developed guillotine cutters that can cut tissue within the eye. A guillotine cutter typically includes an inner cannula that slides within an outer cannula. The outer cannula is inserted through an incision in the cornea. The inner cannula severs tissue that is pulled within a port of the outer cannula. The inner cannula is typically driven in a reciprocating manner by an electric motor or pneumatic power.
The cornea may have resilient tissue that cannot be cut with a conventional motor or pneumatically driven guillotine cutter. To cut the resilient material the surgeon may remove the guillotine cutter and insert a manually actuated cutter. The surgeon actuates the cutter with one of his hands. This method of actuation may cause an undesirable movement of the cutter within the eye. The surgeon must therefore be careful not to move the cutter while actuating the same. It would be desirable to provide a manual cutter that can be actuated without introducing an undesirable movement of the cutter.